Chapter 15 Zhao Zhinian woke up groggily…
Zhao Zhinian woke up groggily, feeling a slight numbness on the side of her face from being pressed down. She could imagine that there must have been several obvious red marks left on her face.
For a moment, she felt a little disoriented, unsure if she was in the office or somewhere else. After all, napping at her desk in the office was a daily routine for her. The company implemented 5S management: sorting, setting in order, sweeping, cleaning, and sustaining. It was ostensibly to "improve efficiency and quality in the workplace," but in reality, it involved repeated checks and announcements on a series of minor details, such as not allowing clothes to be draped over chair backs, not allowing bags on desks, and not allowing folding beds during lunch breaks… Thanks to these management checks, she had become accustomed to napping at her desk, and even in the unfamiliar environment of the Reincarnation Club today, she slept very well.
She subconsciously rubbed her cheek, and when she looked up, she met Zhou Zekai's gaze.
"Awake?" Zhou Zekai asked in a low voice. He was playing a game on his phone, and when he saw that Zhao Zhinian was awake, he quietly turned off his phone and put it aside.
"Hmm..." Zhao Zhinian lowered her head a little embarrassedly, secretly relieved: Thank goodness, I never drool when I sleep on my stomach, so my image is preserved! As she thought this, she casually draped Zhou Zekai's coat over the back of the chair, and then quickly moved the keyboard and mouse that she had pushed aside back to their original positions.
"Why aren't you playing Honor of Kings?" she asked curiously as she arranged her keyboard and mouse. She didn't really mind the noise around her, because everything was uncontrollable during lunch breaks at work. Many colleagues talked on their phones very loudly, and since others were "working," it was considered legitimate. She could only silently endure it while resting.
“There’s no BOSS.” Zhou Zekai answered succinctly, then paused and added, “Jiang will send a message.” He had already informed Jiang Botao that he would not log into the game for the time being, and would send him a WeChat message if there was a BOSS.
Zhao Zhinian guessed that he was probably afraid of waking her up by playing games, and she appreciated Zhou Zekai's thoughtfulness, but she didn't point it out. Instead, she gave a bright smile, stretched, and announced energetically, "Okay! Rest is over, let's begin our glorious journey this afternoon!"
She logged back into her account in the tenth district, [One Knows One Thought], intending to level up while waiting for news from the Realm of Gods. They were lucky; not long after, a boss spawned in the Realm of Gods: the level 70 Red-Robed Warlock Millwall.
After receiving Jiang Botao's message, Zhou Zekai immediately turned to her and said, "The BOSS has refreshed."
At this moment, Zhao Zhinian was working with a team from the Reincarnation Guild in the tenth district, tackling the middle section of a dungeon. The team was cooperating perfectly and had reached a crucial point. She felt too embarrassed to abandon her teammates at this time; after all, she was already someone who received preferential treatment from everyone, and she couldn't very well ask for special treatment again.
She explained apologetically to Zhou Zekai, "I'm only halfway through my dungeon run, so I can't just quit... You go ahead and continue! I'll check your screen view when I'm done."
Zhou Zekai glanced at the dungeon progress on her screen, then at her troubled expression, and nodded: "Okay." He didn't say anything more, immediately focusing on the battle in the God's Domain and heading towards the BOSS spawn location.
Zhao Zhinian was controlling her character to cooperate with her teammates in the dungeon. During breaks, she couldn't help but glance at Zhou Zekai's screen next to her. The battle in the God's Domain was obviously more intense. Skill effects flew around the red-robed warlock. Although each guild had professional players to help, the skill level of the players in the front row varied greatly. Many were killed instantly by a single Shadow Arrow from the BOSS.
In particular, there are also high-level "disruptive players" like Ye Xiu, who bring his guild alliance to join the battle.
Zhou Zekai didn't change his account card, so his [Sun Piercer] naturally became the main target of Team Happy's offense and defense. Of course, his original tactical arrangement with Jiang Botao was that Zhou Zekai would be responsible for containing these few high-level players with considerable strength, while Jiang Botao would be responsible for commanding Samsara.
While throwing bricks, Baozi Invasion asked Zhou Zekai, "Isn't the female version of Mo Guang here? I wanted to chat with her about astrology again!"
Zhou Zekai guessed that he was asking Zhao Zhinian, but the conversation was incoherent and overly familiar. He didn't respond, easily neutralizing Baozi's invasion and Han Yanrou's attacks, easily suppressing two opponents at once, and even providing remote support for Reincarnation's tactical arrangements.
In the midst of the chaos, Lord Grim arrived. He wasn't about to let Zhou Zekai escape Team Happy's entanglement so easily. Before his attack even arrived, he spammed several huge text bubbles, and a screen full of teasing comments popped up: "Hey, Zhou, why are you all alone? Where's your war correspondent? Where did you hide to secretly watch the battle again?"
The other professional players who were engaged in a fierce battle were somewhat confused by these words. They didn't know the cause and effect, and simply assumed that Ye Xiu was talking trash again, so they stopped trying to understand.
Zhou Zekai maneuvered Guan Ri with a precise slide tackle to dodge the attack, and even managed to reply to his senior during a break in the intense battle: "Not here. In the tenth district."
"The tenth district? I have many old friends in the tenth district too! Your guild leader, Lone Drinker, I often interact with him. I wonder if he misses us." Ye Xiu's text bubbles seemed to be filled with laughter. After all, for the guild leader of the tenth district, he was like a nightmare. "It's a pity that the girl missed such a wonderful scene."
Zhou Zekai didn't reply, focusing all his attention on the battle. However, with Ye Xiu holding Zhou Zekai back, Jiang Botao, despite his best efforts, couldn't hold the line alone. He was unaware that there was a mole in his elite team, but he felt that the guild players' skill level was limited and his command was somewhat inadequate. So he began to reflect on the gap between himself and the tactical master. Samsara gradually fell into a disadvantageous position, and Jiang Botao was forced to change his strategy, turning to restricting Ye Xiu's operations.
Ultimately, the two sides fought and the third party benefited. Thanks to Zhang Xinjie's calm and excellent overall command and the powerful strength of the elite team of the Overlord Ambition Guild, they accurately grasped the situation and the BOSS was successfully defeated by the Overlord Ambition team.
The system announcement popped up just as Zhao Zhinian's dungeon session had ended a while ago. She had been observing Zhou Zekai's first-person perspective, casually jotting down key points with her note-taking app. Seeing that Samsara hadn't managed to take down the boss, she leaned over and comforted him, "It's okay, it's okay, we'll get it next time! Tyranny has Zhang Xinjie leading the charge, Lin Jingyan too, and Ye Qiu is keeping a close eye on you..."
With the BOSS's ownership determined, the various guilds gradually called it a day. Several professional players, however, didn't immediately leave; they rarely gathered in the online game, so they chatted for a few moments near the battlefield.
Ye Xiu spoke first, his tone incredibly sincere: "Congratulations, Vice Captain Zhang! As expected of Tyranny, excellent command and formidable strength." However, this congratulation from Tyranny's old rival sounded rather insincere, so Ye Xiu quickly changed the subject and began to "take credit": "Isn't it thanks to us helping you contain Zhou Zekai that you were able to defeat the BOSS so easily?"
Actually, Ye Xiu and Samsara had already started working together against Tyranny during the final stage of the BOSS fight. However, Zhang Xinjie had to admit that the BOSS's successful defeat was indeed due to the mutual restraint between Ye Xiu and Zhou Zekai. Zhang Xinjie was too lazy to pay attention to his trash talk and politely replied, "Thank you."
Zhang Xinjie noticed Zhou Zekai and Jiang Botao beside him: "But I didn't expect that Captain Zhou and Vice Captain Jiang from Samsara would also personally come to the online game to fight for the BOSS today." The implication was that their lineup was a bit too much.
Jiang Botao's voice remained gentle and polite as he responded with a smile: "It's rare to see such a lively online game scene lately, with all the seniors here. Besides competing for the BOSS, we also want to meet with you seniors and learn from you."
Zhou Zekai remained silent as usual, without responding.
Ye Xiu seemed to suddenly remember something: "Hey, why isn't Xiao Zhou saying anything? I think I heard a familiar voice comforting you in your headphones just now? Looks like the tenth server isn't far from you, so your concern can reach you anytime." Ye Xiu's teasing was very tactful, indirect, and without explicitly stating anything, yet it was all pointed out, making the person involved understand instantly.
Zhou Zekai's response to this was still concise, consisting of only one word: "Hmm."
Zhang Xinjie was completely confused, but he had no interest in other people's gossip. He simply said, "Everyone, farewell," and then left cleanly with the Tyranny team.
Zhao Zhinian heard everything clearly from the side and couldn't help but mutter under her breath, "...I didn't expect the great god Ye Qiu to be so gossipy?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Zekai turned to look at her. Seeing her embarrassed yet trying-to-remain calm expression, the corners of his mouth curved upwards almost imperceptibly, and a faint smile flashed in his eyes. He whispered a reminder: "Tactics." After a pause, he added two more words: "Trash talk."
What he meant was that Ye Xiu's behavior, whether it was tactical interference in the game or verbal banter outside the game, could be categorized as a broad form of "trash talk" tactic, aimed at disrupting the opponent's mentality, and should not be taken too seriously.
Zhao Zhinian became more composed: "As expected of the great Ye Qiu, a textbook example of Glory, he is excellent in every aspect."
After the BOSS battle ended, Zhao Zhinian didn't rush to log into the game. Instead, she continued to organize her notes. After accumulating them over this period of time, her notes were quite comprehensive. Zhou Zekai helped her take a look, pointed out some mistakes, and commented, "You've worked very hard."
"Do your best and leave the rest to fate!" Zhao Zhinian's guiding principle has always been that hard work does not guarantee success, but giving up guarantees failure. Opportunities are reserved for those who are prepared, and she has always been good at accumulating experience and waiting.
"I'm waiting for you to interview me," Zhou Zekai encouraged her.
When the interview was mentioned, Zhao Zhinian couldn't help but recall some of her previous "dramatic" online live streams, and sighed, "If you really have another chance, you must be careful with your words and spare my life."
Zhou Zekai nodded obediently.
When they reunited, the joy of regaining what was lost, coupled with the uncertainty of the future, inevitably led him to act with a touch of desperate impulsiveness. At that time, he only had one thought in mind: to express his feelings directly and simply. But their time together recently has gradually soothed the anxiety in his heart. He has gradually gained confidence and peace of mind, and he is no longer in a hurry to demand a result, but is willing to devote patience to accompanying and waiting.
Because he knew that the person he was waiting for was walking towards his world step by step at his own pace.
A note from the author:
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